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Exit Interviews for People Leaving Your Congregation

When people leave our churches it is not always apparent immediately. Some leave because they move away, some die, and some stop attending. The reasons people stop attending can be many. Some people have a change in life circumstances that causes them to stop attending, while others leave due to difficulties they have had at church. Exit interviews (Word) (PDF) conducted by thoughtful membership committee members can help a congregation to find out if it has work to do in retaining members who otherwise might have stayed. These can be conducted by letter, by phone, by email, or in person, using, or adapting, the series of questions in this exit interview text. An introductory note about the interview, such as the one shown in this resource is a courtesy. Doing exit interviews can help your church to learn more about how involved its members and friends feel.